On a Bridge
by achildofthestars
Summary: Lois/Clark. Possible spoilers for 'Bride' and onwards. Lois is standing in the snow and thinking of what she's come for, when it comes finding her.


Damp – she could feel it through the three layers of once warm clothes and one final layer of a thick coat past its prime. With a squint of her eyes, she glanced heavenwards, finding the sun too bright and too relentless at this time of day, this point of time. Perhaps she'd been out here far too long to be trying to make friends with nature's forces.

A step forward brought her closer to the bridge with a crunch against the white snow that she was tainting with dirt and grass. She stopped, still not quite at her destination because she had so much time, to waste, to use, to live. And then she started again, the image before her becoming larger and crisper as the sound of the snow began to match the pace of her small breaths.

Dry – her lips chapped, almost whimpered as she let out a breath, the air rushing from her lungs to escape with brutal hands and sharp swords. The white puff smelling of her just swallowed gum traveled far before diffusing into nothing, free. Her hair refused to let go, clinging to her neck and cheek as beads of perspiration from the exertion formed in the too cold air and were hidden by the dark hood of her coat.

She heard it before she saw it, the weak creak of wood under weight, even under the snow. Teeth beginning to chatter, she almost smiled at the memory of walking along the track in Autumn when no one was around and even the voice of public enemy number one was too distant to smear her down time.

Faint – the trees shivered with a small wind forcing them to release some of their burdens, the sound of snow falling to the ground in clumps eerie and harsh. Instead of looking ahead, she looked down to watch her boots make the journey for her. It was a good thing she'd put on an extra pair of socks at the last minute.

Before she knew it, the sound of the slowly moving water was suddenly swimming in her ears. Muddled and soft, it tripped against a rock and hit a pit of dirt before flowing farther down, away and away into the river. She looked up, the corners of her lips involuntarily lifting slightly as she examined the simple masterpiece before her.

Old – the backbone of the bridge was twisted in v's and w's that met in m's and ended in x's. The snow fell in crevices, white on darkened rust, cold on colder, soft on unyielding. It was abandoned, forgotten, misused. Her feet moved onwards onto the steel enforced wooden planks and her arms rested between the sharp metal railings so she could look over the water.

There had been a moment, more than a moment, when she thought about not returning. Watching the river run under the bridge, she wondered why she'd come back when there was clearly nothing left for her. No, there was The Daily Planet, and she'd die before running away because some farmboy had given her girlie butterflies.

Tired – a breath exhaled, too little and too soft. She focused on the snow grabbing onto her gloves and melting little by little in the afternoon of a March warming to early spring. Her eyes closed as she lifted her face to the sun hiding behind a gray cloud, feeling a chill blow of air against her cheek that made her swallow tightly.

Her head tilted imperceptibly to the left as felt the warmth of the sun finally resurfaced, maybe forgiving her, probably not. She didn't know what she was doing out here. She'd left Chloe's without thinking, needing to breathe, needing to feel alone. Now she was, and now she felt like she'd never been closer to home.

Low – the guttural sound of a throat clearing caused her eyes to flip open and froze her neck in place, her heart suddenly picking up a few missing beats. She glanced frantically out of the corners of her eyes, almost as if an escape hatch had been hidden somewhere under the glossy swells around her.

Snow licked shoe and the sound made her ears warm even as his steps stopped close enough for her to breathe in his heat.

"It's peaceful out here."

Without looking at him, she knew he was staring at anything but her. It calmed her, gave her a little push she desperately needed.

"It _was. _Now, it's just cold."

"But you're here."

"Not anymore. Bye, Smallville."

Soft – skin met her wrist, always her wrist, clothed and too thick to feel the blood under his skin but burning angrily all the same. They finally quit, eyes meeting the other's for the first time in what felt like months, what _was_ months. They were scared. When weren't they when it came to the person standing in front of them?

"Lois…."His flesh bunched above his dark brows as he said her name.

She freed her bones first, watching his hand drop to his pocket before she breathed too deeply. How many times had she rehearsed this? Enough to see the words written in the snow and sliding to his feet because he was walking on them, stuttering and damaging them beyond recognition.

"That's it? 'Lois.' Months without me and I figured you'd be getting beat up by girl scouts and pleading on hands and knees for my amazingly lethal skills."

"I was going to say I missed you." His brows relaxed. "I changed my mind."

"Right. Because now I'm here, ready to rescue my flannel wearing damsel in distress. So, where are those devious munchkins?"

"It's Sunday. You can catch them at church. Oh, wait, that's hallowed ground."

"Smallville, you're getting dangerously close to fending off those badge loaded pipsqueaks alone."

He smiled, teeth shining through and lips remarkably moist and she managed to keep her mouth set into a line of irritation. When his smile started to fall with drops heaving over minutes, she shoved her gloved hands inside her deep pockets and turned her body, sharply and quickly, looking into an area beside his shoulder where the bridge was losing its frosty white sheen.

The warmth she had felt from his body shifted, drawing back from her, landing somewhere close but not near. With one intake of breath she could hear his chest heave, the words she knew would have to be spoken but didn't want to hear, surely on the loose. So, she fought first.

"Chloe's been keeping me up to speed." She glanced up for a second to see his mouth shut. "And you're an idiot for letting Lana go. All this time you've wanted her back, and then when she finally was, you have to go and be stupid Clark Kent."

"I thought you hated the Lana-Clark rollercoaster?"

"I do. But," she bit her cold lip. "It's your favorite ride. Just because I wouldn't buy a ticket doesn't mean I wouldn't stand by and wait." A surprised lift of his left eyebrow caused her to roll her eyes. "You know, just to see you puke your guts out. Tell you I told you so."

Shaking his head, he sighed harshly. "Have I ever told you what a _great_ friend you are?"

"Why state the obvious, Smallville?"

Light- his vocal cords emitted a chuckle and he lifted a bare hand to one of the bridge's metal supports, his index finger wiping away smooth snow in a single motion. Fallen to the ground, it lay at their feet as he grasped the metal bar carefully in his right hand and looked over the snow covered trees underneath them on the banks.

Drawn to him, linked to him without knowing it, she managed two measured steps to stand beside him, the arm of her coat brushing his red one, her eyes parallel to his and focused on something not even there. All she wanted to do was leave, return to the girl who barely tolerated Clark Kent, watch the boy who couldn't stand Lois Lane.

"All this time, I've been holding onto what Lana and I had. And then when she was here, it was like everything was how it should be." His eyes shifted down towards hers to see her swallow but she didn't catch it. "Except it was different. I don't know." Letting his arm fall, he shook his head. "She's all I've seen for so long. Maybe that's why I couldn't…move on. I loved her, love her, but she's not fourteen anymore and neither am I. So…there."

Blue eyes fell onto her and she could see his heartache, not over losing Lana Lang, but losing the insanely innocent part of his boyhood. Relieved, for some reason she'd rather not think about, she attempted a smile he could use.

"Thank God for that. I can barely handle grown Clark, much less freshly minted teeny bopper Clark with hormones galore."

"Lois?" Clark groaned.

Her eyes narrowed and she stood straighter. "What?"

Just for a second, barely caught by either of them, they stepped towards each other with destinies uniting even more than before. He closed his eyes and opened them with great strength while she bit her tongue.

"Welcome home."

"You can't say that without hot chocolate."

"As long as you don't make it."

"Then by all means, hup-hup, Clarkie."

Hopeless – his look conveyed his annoyance but she laughed and turned away, wasting away into her footprints of the trek before so that he could follow in his. She heard his breathing, never seeming to tire but running rampant from his lips as he caught up to her with something of a dare in his stance.

She looked back, the anatomy of steel blinding her momentarily before melting into the snow of lost footprints.

"I _did_ miss you, Lois."

Words she hadn't expected to hear. Words she didn't realize she'd wanted to hear.

"I know, Smallville. I'd miss me too."

Quick – she ran, smiling as he called out 'cheater.' Frowning when he beat her. Laughing when he tripped.


End file.
